I love sharing photographs from my research trips to Japan, both because of my fondness for Japanese culture, history, and architecture and because I like giving context to go along with the images. (I notice a lot of online photos show the setting, but don’t explain it, and I hope my “virtual tours” will help give context to these incredible sites.) Today, we’re visiting Tofuku-ji, a Rinzai Zen Buddhist temple just south of Kyoto that also provided one of the settings for my first Hiro Hattori / Shinobi mystery, Claws of the Cat. In fact, the Sanmon at Tofuku-ji is the oldest such gate in

As a writer of crime fiction, death plays a central part in my novels. Although I’m not morbid by nature (well, not entirely, anyway), I’ve always had an interest in cultural rituals of every kind, particularly those surrounding death, religion, and the afterlife. The final stage of the rituals surrounding a death affirmed the deceased’s new identity as an “ancestor.” This often included giving the deceased a new name (often a Buddhist name) and family members performing or arranging for certain rituals and prayers for an extended time–often far beyond the standard 49 days of “deep mourning” that followed death. In some cases, a stupa

In Kyoto, the word maiko refers to an apprentice geiko (elsewhere in Japan, these entertainers are referred to as “geisha”)–a woman who has not yet completed the necessary training and ceremonies to become a full-fledged geiko, or entertainer. Since maiko normally go to the hairdresser only once a week, they rest their necks on traditional wooden stands (known as takamakura) while sleeping. This way, the elaborate hairstyle remains in place. Traditionally, geisha (or geiko) wear a white collar (han’eri) inside the neckline of their dress kimono, while the collar of a maiko is normally red. Also by tradition, a new or debuting maiko’s collar is not only red, but unadorned. Later

I spend a lot of time in medieval Japan. Since I’m not in possession of a time machine (more’s the pity) most of that time gets spent in my head, or in books, but last summer I had the chance to spend a night in a ryokan (a traditional Japanese inn) that came as close as I may ever get to the life my ninja detective, Hiro, would have lived on a daily basis. During my research trip to Japan, I spent the night at Ryokan Iwaso on Miyajima, a sacred island off the coast of Hiroshima. Constructed in 1854,

Today, I’d like to take you on a tour of “justice” in samurai-era Japan. The medieval Japanese justice system actually consisted of two parallel systems: one for commoners, and the other for samurai. Did you know that 16th century Japan had a functional (and well-organized) police force and court system?

Noren are traditional Japanese doorway hangings. Most noren are made of fabric panels, with a slit cut up the center to permit passage through the door. Japanese businesses traditionally hang a noren in the entrance during business hours. The presence of the noren indicates the shop is open for business. The lack of a noren in the doorway means the shop is closed. During the medieval period, many noren were made from indigo-colored cloth. White characters on the noren announced the shop’s name and, sometimes, the type of business conducted. Commercial houses often had a shop name ending in -ya (meaning “house

BETRAYAL AT IGA

BETRAYAL AT IGA
Autumn, 1565: After fleeing Kyoto, master ninja Hiro Hattori and Portuguese Jesuit Father Mateo take refuge with Hiro’s ninja clan in the mountains of Iga province. But when an ambassador from the rival Koga clan is murdered during peace negotiations, Hiro and Father Mateo must find the killer in time to prevent a war between the ninja clans.